Ohio changes its mind regarding evolution

Feb 15, 2006

The state of Ohio has changed its mind about the teaching of evolution, dropping a rule mandating inclusion of anti-evolution material in biology classes.

The Ohio Board of Education voted 11-4 Tuesday to discard the rule requiring 10th-grade biology classes to include a critical analysis of evolution, as well as an accompanying model lesson plan, The New York Times reported Wednesday.

The move was the second major defeat for proponents of intelligent design in two months. Intelligent design posits life is too complex to have just evolved without help.

Ohio became the first state to require special scrutiny for the theory of evolution when it adopted the rule and lesson plan in 2002. Tuesday's reversal is seen as a move to avoid a lawsuit in the wake of a December federal court decision in Pennsylvania holding the teaching of intelligent design in public schools is unconstitutional, The Times reported.

Adherents of intelligent design called the Tuesday decision "an outrageous slap in the face to the citizens of Ohio."

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